Page 6 of Iced Out

CHAPTER 3

Tae gripped the back of his pants to hold them up and squirmed back onto the seat. With his hands cuffed, he couldn’t fasten the front, but that wasn’t his concern just then. Something had brought the car to a dead stop.

Or someone.

Tae’s heart pounded. Dad? But the “obstacle” was in front of them, not behind them.

“Go around them,” the passenger mumbled, his voice growing tense.

“How?” the driver snapped. “They’re blocking both lanes.”

Tae scooted against the rear driver’s side door and pressed his face to the window, trying to see what was happening on the road. He caught a glimpse of a black car parked sideways across the passing lane, but couldn’t see into the driving lane.

Both his abductors were distracted, neither paying attention to Tae. His pulse quickened until it thundered in his head as he scooted with his back against the door, fumbling with the handle. His heartbeat spiked when he felt the latch give and the door loosen.

Tae was facing his attacker—the man still looking ahead—when he threw himself against the door. Instead of swinging open, the door caught. Tae realized too late that he hadn’t fully disengaged the latch. He scrambled to grab the door handle again, but his failed escape snapped the man’s focus back to him.

“Hey!” the passenger grabbed Tae by the hair and yanked him away from the door. “You little fuck!” He spun Tae around, his back slamming into the man’s thick chest, then caught Tae by the throat, his thumb lodged firmly against the crook of Tae’s jaw. “One move, gook,” he hissed in Tae’s ear, “and I’ll snap your scrawny neck.”

His words frightened Tae—but he also heard the man’s fear in his voice. Tae’s eyes darted to the front windshield, where he saw the second car blocking the driving lane: a cherry-red 1969 Ford Mustang Mach 1. He immediately recognized it because he and Luke had thought it was awesome the first time they saw it. They’d even gotten to ride in it.

They were here for Tae.

“You’re… already… dead…” Tae rasped, choking under the man’s grip.

“Shut up,” the man hissed more sharply, tightening his hold. He looked anxiously at the driver. “Back up, turn around, and get us out of here!”

The driver dropped the vehicle into reverse, hit the gas, then slammed on the brakes again, throwing Tae and the passenger against the back seat.

“What the fuck?” the man started, but the driver didn’t respond, staring out the side window in the sideview mirror.

Both Tae and his would-be rapist turned at the same time, looking out through the vehicle's rear cargo space.

Tae’s heart surged: his dad’s SUV idled just inches from the rear bumper of the kidnapper’s car, leaving the men trapped with nowhere to run.

Trembling, Tae swallowed hard as fresh tears spilled down his face. “That’s… my dad.”

He couldn’t see the man’s face, but he felt the shudder ripple through his body.

“Do something,” the passenger demanded of the driver.

“Like what?”

“Use your fucking authority,” the man snapped. “We’re protected under federal law. Take charge.”

The driver turned to look into the back seat. “Why don’t you do it?”

“If I let go of this little fucker, he’s gonna bolt.”

The driver huffed at the man’s excuse. “Whatever.” He drew his weapon, popped the door loose, then eased it open. He didn’t get out right away. “We’re immigration officers,” he called to the men in the cars blocking the road. “You’re interfering with federal duties. Remove your vehicles and let us pass, or you will be arrested.”

The two cars idled in place, with a couple more cars alongside them, enforcing the blockade. The driver’s door of the black car opened, and a man stepped out—late twenties, Latino—with his weapon holstered at his hip. The passenger of the black car got out and casually joined the Latino driver. He was slightly taller, with a fraction more muscle mass than the driver.

Tae trembled. Cruz and Sanchez.

“You got something of ours, amigo,” Cruz said. “We’re not leaving without it.”

The driver hesitated, then stepped out of the car, raising his sidearm at Cruz. “You’re interfering with law enforcement. Leave now, or… or else.” The slight tremor in his voice and his choice of words would have been amusing to Tae—if not for the strong hand gripping his throat.